Contents

In the games

Generations I and II

The TV in the player's house displays a movie. Other televisions in these generations were merely for decoration purposes and, unlike later generations, the television is in the middle of the room. Televisions normally appeared in residential houses. The same applies in FireRed and LeafGreen.

Generation III

Television returned in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, replacing Generation II's radio broadcasts and served a purpose unlike the Generation I TVs. They were present in most houses in Hoenn, but had a limited function, only showing programs when an event occurs, such as swarming Pokémon, or when the player changes a Pokémon's nickname at the Name Rater. They may also show interviews with the player character, who answers by selecting words from a drop-down list. When a program is airing, the television screen will flash, and will not cease flashing until the program has been watched. If an event has not happened to activate a television program, the screen will remain blank and the phrase "Mom/Dad might like this program... better get going!" will be played. The programming is organized by Hoenn TV.

In Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, a key item called the Teachy TV is given to the player at the start of the game. It airs the Poké Dude Show, where a character called the Poké Dude will instruct the player on basic gameplay elements like how to catch Pokémon and how to battle.

Generation IV

In Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum television screens flash constantly. Jubilife TV produces many television programs broadcast all around the Sinnoh region, including the Trend Tracker show, Trainer Research, and Sinnoh Now. Each program includes information about events happening around Sinnoh, including swarming Pokémon and weather conditions affecting different routes. They may also contain information about the player which is customizable by speaking to a number of interviewers which can be found scattered around the region. Like in the previous generation, the answers to the interviewers' questions are limited, but more answers can be added by learning trendy phrases in Snowpoint City. At the conclusion of each program, a series of advertisements can be watched.

The events of the main storyline in Diamond and Pearl are encouraged by a television program, The Search for the Red Gyarados. Later, at the Survival Area, the player will encounter the cameraman responsible for this story. In Platinum this person can be found blocking the entrance to Lake Valor hoping to see Azelf before Team Galactic detonates the Galactic Bomb there.

There is also a TV in the Old Chateau which contains a wild Rotom at night (after obtaining the National Pokédex in Diamond and Pearl, and at any time in Platinum).

Generation V

In Pokémon Black and White, televisions show a variety of different programmes. The type of television shows that are broadcast at any particular instance depend on the in-game time.

For the first ten minutes of every hour, documentaries and a cartoon focusing on the player character are broadcast. Each program acts as a view of in-game statistics, telling the player how many times he/she has had a Pokémon flee, how much money he/she has spent at shops, how many Trainers and Pokémon he/she has defeated, and so on.

From ten minutes past to thirty-five minutes past each hour, educational shows are broadcast. These are "The Waving Weaving Walk", which describes various Abilities; "Moves for Living", which describes various moves that are new to the game; and "Watchy the Watchog", which inspects held items that are new to the games.

For the last twenty-five minutes of each hour, other shows such as human interest pieces are broadcast; these include "Eyes on Unova", "Your Pokémon", "Personality Assessment and Horoscope", "National Gymquirer", and "Unova News". Other programs shown at this time are "Koukan Talk", which teaches Japanese in the North American games; and "PokéQuiz", which quizzes three kids on the Japanese names of Pokémon. There are even infomercials advertising overpriced items.

In Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, all the previous shows are retained, and new shows, such as "The Pokémon Whisperer" and "The Pokémon Live Sports Broadcast" have been added. There are now three different channels the player can select to watch a certain type of show: Celebrity, Battle, and Variety.

Trivia

TVs are wider since the Generation IV games. This may reflect the general trend towards new TVs being widescreen.

In Generation IV, only cathode ray tube televisions have been used, as the Generation IV games did not feature plasma or LCD screen televisions, with the exception of the Villa television set. However, in Generation V, these types of televisions became commonplace, replacing cathode ray tube televisions.